


The Stars In His Eyes

by infinityfactor



Series: Cosmic Insignificance [1]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Fluff, Gratuitous Space Talk, M/M, Mild Existential Grief, Pre-Pluto Mission
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-04
Updated: 2016-07-04
Packaged: 2018-07-21 13:44:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,334
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7389301
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/infinityfactor/pseuds/infinityfactor
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A supernova of emotion exploded between them, feelings that Shiro had repressed since their first week of training together, and he felt like he held the galaxy in his hands.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Stars In His Eyes

**Author's Note:**

> Fun Space Fact: Pluto’s average surface temperature is about -229C/-380F and has a gravity of .62 m/s^2 (earth’s is 9.807 m/s^2) 
> 
> Part 1/? of a Cosmic Insignificance (a series of really gay space-themed shit)
> 
> (Recommend you listen to ['Higher' - Mystery Skulls](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tzks1RQJbAg) while reading  
> 

The cold air bit at Shiro, as he stood on the roof of the pilot barracks, gaze trained to the heavens. The sky had always been beautiful to him, that’s likely what led Shiro to becoming an exploration pilot. He always wanted to be up there, surrounded by the infinite.

But now, it just made him feel small. Minuscule. Insignificant on the cosmic scale of things. 

If he smoked, this seemed like it would be a perfect time for a cigarette. 

Shiro wasn’t dressed in much, a simple t-shirt and sweatpants, and though it was summer time, the air seemed cooler than normal. He had snuck out of his sleeping quarters, where he was supposed to be getting well needed rest rest before his flight tomorrow. Thinking about his mission sent a chill down his spine, although he wrote it off to the wind. 

If Shiro was superstitious, this would be a premonition of disaster. 

He sincerely hoped the space suits would keep them warm. 

-

It was quiet on the roof, a soft breeze was blowing, and Shiro wanted to take the time to compose himself. He couldn’t be nervous tomorrow, he had to be at his absolute peak. There was no room for mistakes, not when he had two other people with him. 

And Matt…

“Can’t sleep?” 

Someone behind Shiro spoke, and he jolted, terrified for a brief second that he was caught. 

Though that terror was soon quelled.

“Matt,” Shiro breathed out, relieved as he turned to face Matt. Then, “You should be asleep.” 

“That’s rich, coming from you.” A teasing smirk played on Matt’s lips as he approached Shiro. “I saw you sneak out before I fell asleep, and wanted to see what you were up to.” 

“I’m just…” What was he doing? Trying to calm his nerves, and making the brazen attempt to understand his place in the universe. He didn’t finish his thought, though, instead looking back up to the sky. They’d be up there, in a few hours. Far away from everything they’ve ever known, leaving their lives behind. Well, this was their life. “Matt.” 

“Hm?” His hum sounded distant, and when Shiro looked at him, he could see Matt just as distracted by the stars as he was. 

“Do you… Do you ever worry that… something might happen? To us?” He looks up, towards the sky. The stars shimmer in the night, each twinkling at a different speed. They’re all so far away, Shiro wonders if any of them are still even alive. He remembered hearing as a kid that every star in the sky was billions of years old, and they had already died, burnt up, supernova’d. But surely there were some stars that were new, close enough for the light to reach earth without having died yet. Young enough to still be twinkling somewhere in the expanse of space. And the countless stars that were just being born, light not yet reaching even the nearest of galaxies.

Just the thought alone of other universes, galaxies, worlds with other people thinking the same thoughts he had made Shiro feel very insignificant. 

“Out there, I mean.” He gestured to the sky,

He could feel Matt’s eyes on him, bright as the stars he'd always been enamored with. 

“Sounds like someone’s got pre-flight jitters. Didn’t think you had it in you.”  
 “I’m serious.” Shiro laughs, though, his eyes crinkling softly at the corners. Matt laughs along with him, and it dissipates much of the tension between them. 

“We barely have any idea what’s out there, and it’s a long way to Pluto.” His lips pulled into a frown. “What if we don’t even make it there?” 

“You sound like we’re on a death mission, Shiro. Of course we’re going to make it there,” Matt says, rather flatly. “Come with me.” 

Before Shiro could say anything, Matt had grabbed his hand and tugged him closer to the edge of the roof, where he had sat down. Shiro followed suit.

“I always used to do this with Katie,” He starts, and Shiro realizes that Matt hasn’t let go of his hand yet. He raised his free hand and pointed to the sky, and Shiro’s gaze absentmindedly followed. “I’d point out the constellations and planets with her whenever she was nervous. It seemed to calm her down.” 

As Matt traced the visible constellations with his fingers, pointing out each individual star and naming them off, Shiro’s lips pulled into a smile. Even though he already knew the names of the constellations, the stars, the positions of the planets on any given night, it was soothing hearing Matt name them off. 

Just being with Matt was soothing. 

But Shiro couldn’t help but stare at him instead of the sky. He took note of the way his lips moved around his words, how the grip on his hand tightened ever so slightly, how his fingers twitched around Shiro’s, a nervous habit of Matt’s that Shiro had come to recognize. He smiled softly, lacing his fingers between Matt’s and giving his hand a firm, but gentle squeeze, to remind him they were in this together. 

Matt turned to look at him, and smiled. 

Shiro had always been in love with the heaven’s, fascinated by the stars and his place in the universe. He always thought that there was nothing more beautiful than the night sky in an area away from the city’s light pollution, when he could see the disk of the galaxy across the night sky. 

But none of that compared to the boy sitting next to him. That’s all they were, two boys about to go further into space than any human had succeeded in doing before. But Matt. Matt was different. 

His eyes shone with a starry look, and Shiro felt a surge of emotion. 

“There’s something I have to tell you.” The words fell out in an unintended rush, tumbled off his tongue like cumbersome boulders hell bent on embarrassing him. Shiro hoped that they sounded like actual words. 

Matt just nodded, and every thought in Shiro’s mind slipped away as he stared. There wasn’t much light, but the glow from the moon shone on Matt’s face and lit up his features. It left him feeling breathless. 

It was too late to back out, but Shiro wasn’t sure he wanted to anyways. 

“I, um… wanted to tell you before we left, in case something happened and I didn’t get an opportunity to afterwords, I didn’t want to waste it and regret it for the rest of my life…” He started speaking again, looking away from Matt to avoid losing his train of thought again. 

Shiro must have been talking for a while, because Matt cleared his throat and that shut Shiro right up. He felt a soft squeeze on his hand, and that spurred him on to continue.

“I care about you. A lot. I-In more than a friend or colleague way.” Good work, Shiro. 

Matt let out a breathy laugh, and Shiro ventured a glance towards him. “I care about you too. In… the same way. I have for a while now.” His expression softened into one Shiro had never seen on him before. One of pure adoration. It left him breathless and open-mouthed. Again. 

And then Matt leaned forward, pulling Shiro into a soft kiss. A supernova of emotion exploded between them, feelings that Shiro had repressed since their first week of training together, and he felt like he held the galaxy in his hands.  
When they parted, Shiro still had that wide-eyed, open-mouthed expression he held before. 

Matt laughed. 

It was such a beautiful sound, and as much as Shiro wanted to listen to it forever, he’d much rather kiss Matt again. 

So he did. 

And when they parted for a second time, Shiro felt as breathless as he did the first time he met Matt. 

He had the stars in his eyes, and a universe in his heart.

And Takashi Shirogane had never felt so important.

**Author's Note:**

> follow me on tumblr @bpd-lance for more of this nonsense


End file.
